Bastard Out of Carolina (1996)

Too much of everything

Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

Redundant and unnecessary.

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Story takes place in (I'm guessing) the 1930s in the deep south. Anney (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is an unwed mother with two girls the oldest being Ruthann (Jena Malone). She meets handsome lively Glen (Ron Eldard) and marries him. But Glen has a bad temper and beats Ruthann regularly. Her mother doesn't know it and Glen keeps getting angrier and angrier.VERY disturbing but well-done movie. The actors all fake authentic Southern accents and it captures the era perfectly. The acting is just incredible. Leigh was just letter perfect as the mother. She does love her girls and her husband and is horrified when she realizes what's going on. Eldard was a little one-note in his performance but that was mostly cause the script didn't really explore his character. He was downright terrifying when he loses control a few times. Malone was only 10 when she did this and she was incredible! VERY talented for such a young child and holds her own especially in downright horrific sequence at the end. Even the supporting roles were well-acted with Michael Rooker and Glenne Headly being standouts. Also it's all narrated by Laura Dern. As for the beatings--they're never really shown until the very end. You HEAR them though and that's bad enough. The acting is so good by Malone and Eldard you believe every second of them.One complaint--the movie feels unfinished. It looks like either a lot was cut out of the script or out of the movie. Some scenes come and go quickly and have characters you've never met. Still this is well worth watching...but it is disturbing (as it should be) and powerful.

This movie is a masterpiece.It deals with a touchy subject. The actors and actresses play there parts so well. You can actually see the sadness in Malone and the hate in Eldard's face. Its sad because things like this happen all the time. This movie is not some fake movie that someone made up in there head. Its truth this does happen to people. And its sad because Leigh's character as the lonely mother is real there are mothers out there that are stuck between loving there child or there lover. Its a sad situation and this movie shows you life. This movie is for sure excellent 10 stars from me.I would recommend this movie to anyone who likes serious movies that just have you on the edge of your seat.

This is an often shocking but necessary film about a young girl called Bone and the abuse she suffers at the hands of her stepfather, Daddy Glen. The film is hard to watch at times but there are lighter moments when Bone's extended family are on screen. The book contains a much wider scope and naturally many of these subplots didn't make it into the screenplay. Ultimately, the film feels a little rushed and could have benefited from another half hour or so.The quality of the acting is patchy. Lyle Lovett's delivery of his few lines of dialogue is very wooden compared to Michael Rooker's excellent portrayal of gentle giant Earl. Jena Malone does a brilliant job in obviously difficult circumstances as young Bone. The look in her eyes breaks your heart whenever things are about to turn violent, making you want to rescue her yourself. Jennifer Jason Leigh is fine as Bone's mother but you feel like you never really get to see beneath the surface of her determined expression to understand her motives for standing by her man in the face of Glen's obvious resentment of her daughter.Ron Eldard is excellent in his depiction Glen, expertly capturing the character's pathetic childishness behind those icy blue eyes. Eldard often seems to play characters with a dark side and this role plays to his strengths, even if his southern accent slips from time to time. His scenes of violence with Bone are harrowing to watch and you can't help but feel uncomfortable, given the age of Jena Malone at the time. I know it's 'only acting' but the scenes are very realistic and graphic for a young actress to endure.The film is one that ought to be shown to any single mother tempted to jump into a relationship with a hot-headed young man with questionable intentions.

I read the book before I watched the movie, and I was thoroughly impressed with both. The story is amazing. I love to see how Bone's family supports and protects her. I love seeing the love her mother has for both of her children and even though Daddy Glen is a sick man, you can see that he has love in his heart. It's a great movie and book to analyze and be touched by. I really recommend it. Please, though, read the book. The book takes you into the characters and introduces you to so many people and situations that shape Bone's life from the time she is born. Dorothy Allison portrays the poor class in the South so accurately (probably because she lived it) and the movie does the same. I'm no movie critic, but this is one that I definitely loved.